Mouthpiece for sound-producing devices



Sept. 22, 1942. v. T. HOEFLICH ,2,296,786

MOUTHPIECE FOR SOUND PRODUCING DEVICESl Filed April 22, 1942 v I A-rronmrvs Patented Sept. 22, 1942 UNETEB STATES PiTlii-lil i? Fl li?.

M'OU'IHPI'ECEV FOR SOUD-PRODUCING DEVICES Application April 22, 1942, Serial No. 440,015

(Cl. lifi- 180) 12 Claims.

This invention relates to sound-producing devices, and more particularly to a mouthpiece for the same.

`The primary object of my invention is to generally improve sound-producing devices, such as toy horns. In my prior application Serial No. 366,536, led November 22, 1940, I have disclosed a simplified mouthpiece assembly comprising only two main parts, one of these being a tubular mouthpie-ce, and the other being a thin vibratile reed. The mouthpiece is a single piece of plastic molded to provide a lower bridge, an upper bridge, and contact led-ges extending longitudinally of the mouthpiece between said bridges. The reed overlies the contact ledges and the lower bridge, and additional slits are provided beneath the upper bridge to snugly receive the rear end of the reed with a tight t, such as to hold the reed permanently in position.

The above-described mouthpiece assembly has proved satisfactory in operation, and far superior to mouthpiece assemblies theretofore known. However, some difficulty has arisen in molding the plastic mouthpiece, because, in order to provide the two bridges, it has been necessary to use rather slender, delicate, over-lapping cores. ySome difficulty has been occasioned by core breakage, and other difficulty has been occasioned by the formation of a n of plastic material between the over-lapping faces of the cores.

One primary object of my invention is to overcome the foregoing difficulty. I have found that the molding operation may be greatly simplified and improved if the mouthpiece is molded without the upper bridge. I have further found that the upper bridge may be provided as a part of the reed, the bridge then ybeing formed by an approximately semi-circular piece of sheet metal, formed integrally with and bent upwardly from the stationary end of the reed.

The resulting construction has a further advantage, in that it is easier to assemble the two parts of the complete assembly. Moreover, by making the upper bridge somewhat oversized, the edge of the upper bridge is forced into tight engagement with the mouthpiece, causing it to bite into the plastic material, thus effectively insuring against any possibility of accidental Separation of the two parts of the assembly.

A further advantage of the improved mouthpiece is that the tubular portion of the same may, if desired, be formed out of sheet metal which is `drawn and pressed to shape, instead of Abeing cast. This results from elimination of the upper bridge, for the other parts, such as the contact ledges and the lower bridge, may -be formed by appropriately shaping and indenting an otherwise generally tubular or conoidal mouthpiece.

To the accomplishment of the foregoing objects, and such other objects as will hereinafter appear, my invention consists in the sound-proJ ducing elements, and their relation one to' the other, as hereinafter are more particularly described in the specification and sought to be dened in the claims. The specification is accompanied by a drawing in which Fig. 1 is a perspective vi-ew showing a molded mouthpiece applied to the small end of a horn body;

Fig. 2 is a Vertical section taken longitudinally through the same;

Fig. 3 is a horizontal section taken approximately in the plane of the line 3 3 of Fig. 2;

Fig. 4 is an end view `of the mouthpiece assembly looking into the large end;

Fig. 5 is a view looking into the small end of the mouthpiece assembly;

Fig. 6 is a transverse section taken approximately in the plane of the line 6 6 of Fig'. 2;

Fig. 7 is a perspective view showing the sheet metal reed and upper bridge;

Fig. 8 is a schematic section explanatory of the manner in `which the mouthpiece Imay be molded in a two-part mold, this section ybeing taken in av plne substantially the same as the section of Fig.

Fig. 9 is a longitudinal section taken through a modified mouthpiece assembly using a sheet Vmetal mouthpiece;

Fig. 10 is a section taken approximately in the plane of the line lll-lll of Fig. 9;

Fig. 11 is a similar section, lbut showing a modication;

Fig. 12 is a longitudinal section through a mouthpiece assembly similar to that shown in Fig. 9, but using an annular stop ledge;

Fig. 13 is a transverse section taken approxi-- mately in the plane of the line |3-l3 of Fig. 12; and

Fig. 14 is a similar section, but showing a modification.

Referring to the drawing, and more particularly to Fig'. 1, the sound-producing device here illustrated is a horn comprising a generally conical body H, only the small end of which is shown, and a mouthpiece M, the large end of which is dimensioned to frictionally receive the small end of the horn H. The horn body may be made of any suitable sheet material, such as cardboard, metal foil-coated paper, sheet metal, or the like.

Referring now to Figs. 2 through 7 of the drawing, the mouthpiece assembly comprises a generally tubular member I2, having integrally formed therewith a lower bridge I4, contact ledges I6, and a stop ledge I8. The stop ledge marks the desired location of an upper bridge, but in accordance with the present invention, no attempt is made to form the upper bridge as a part of the mouthpiece, and instead the upper bridge 2-0 is made integrally with the reed 22. As is best shown in Fig. 7, the bridge 2U is approximately semi-circular, and is bent upwardly at the stationary end of the reed, the reed and bridge being made of a single piece of thin resilient material, preferably sheet metal. (It is convenient to use the terms upper and lower, but it will be understood that the mouthpiece assembly will function in any position.)

The space beneath the reed and between the contact ledges corresponds to the so-called sound channel, usually made as a separate sheet metal part. With my structure no separate sound channel is needed.

To assemble the parts, it is merely necessary to insert the reed through the large end of the mouthpiece, with the reed overlying the contact ledges I6 and the lower bridge I4. The upper bridge 20 is pressed into the mouthpiece with a force fit, until stopped by the stop ledge I8. rIhe bridge is preferably made somewhat oversized, so that its edge is bent outwardly, as is indicated at 24 in Figs. 2 and 3. This not only insures a tight fit, but causes the relatively sharp edge of the sheet metal toV bite into the plastic, thus locking the two main parts of the mouthpiece permanently together. The shape of the reed is such that at this `time it is disposed slightly above the lower bridge, and is free to vibrate.

One main advantage of providing the upper bridge as a part of the reed, is a great simpliiication in the die for molding the mouthpiece. One form of die is shown schematically in Fig. 8, in which it will be seen that .the die cavity 30 is formed between die halves 32 and 34, which are separable on a parting face 36. Die 32 has a core 38 projecting therefrom, with grooves 39 in its sides, while die 34 has a core 4U. The grooves 39 produce the Contact ledges I6. The cores are relatively simple and sturdy in configuration. There is no difculty with breakage, nor with the formation of a fin between slender core parts which may be bent away from each other slightly by the pressure of the molding material.

It will be understood that the cast or molded form of my invention may be made of any suitable moldable material other than plastics, for example, die cast metal such as magnesium, should that metal become plentiful, or hard rubber, etc.

Fig. 8 is called schematic because in practice the cores are made separately and are inserted in the main mold body. Furthermore, the gate passage has been omitted in Fig. 8. In practice a series of mold cavities may be used, connected by radial gates or by branched gates, all in accordance with known injection-molding practice.

When the upper bridge is eliminated from the mouthpiece, the latter becomes substantially an open tubular member, and it is therefore possible `to make the same out of a single piece of sheet metal, as, for example, by drawing sheet metal to conoidal shape, or by changing tubular sheet metal to conoidal shape, with appropriate indentations and modifications in the shape to form the desired parts. Specifically, referring to Figs. 9 and 10 of the drawing, the mouthpiece there shown is made of sheet metal, and is appropriately-indented at 42 to 'form a bottom bridge or its equivalent. The sheet metal is indented at the top, as indicated at 44, thus providing the stop ledge. The sheet metal is also longitudinally indented in the region between bridge 42 and stop ledge 44, thereby forming the contact ledges 46. The reed 48 is formed integrally with the upper bridge 50, just as was previously described.

Fig. 11 is a section similar to Fig. 10, but showing a modication in which contact ledges 52 are provided by deforming the cross-sectional shape of the tubular member, the lower part 54 being curved on a radius substantially smaller than that of the upper part 56. In other respects the modification of Fig. 11 is like that shown in Fig. 9, the lower bridge 42 and the stop ledge 44 being provided in the same way as in Fig. 9.

Figs. 12 and 13 illustrate a modification which is substantially similar to that shown in Figs. 9 and 10, but which differs in providing an annular stop ledge 58 which may, if desired, extend entirely around the mouthpiece, instead of being localized at the top, as was indicated at 44 in Figs. 9 and 10. The upper half of the annular ledge 58 is engaged bythe entire semi-circular periphery of the upper bridge 50. The lower bridge 60 and the contact ledges 62 are formed in the same way as the parts 42 and 46 in Figs. 9 and 10.

Fig. 14 is a section similar to Fig. 13, and shows a modification which is related to Fig. 13 in the same way that the modification of Fig. 11 was related to Fig. 10. Specically, in the modification of Fig. 14, the reed contact ledges 64 are provided by deforming the tubular mouthpiece, so that the lower part 66 is curved on a smaller radius than the upper part 68. It will be understood that in other respects the modication of Fig. 14 is like that described in connection with Figs. 12 and 13, the lower bridge 60 and the annular sto-p ledge 58 being provided in the same manner.

It is believed that the improved sound-producing device of my invention, as well as the method of making the same and the advantages thereof, will be apparent from the foregoing detailed description. It will also be apparent that while I have shown and described my invention in several preferred forms, many changes and modifications may be made, without departing from the spirit of the invention as sought to be defined in the following claims.

I claim:

1. A mouthpiece assembly, said assembly comprising only two main parts, one being a generally tubular mouthpiece so shaped as to include an integrally formed lower bridge, the other part being made of thin sheet material, and comprising a reed and an upper bridge bent upwardly at the stationary end of the reed, the two main parts being assembled together With the movable end of the reed overlying the lower bridge, and with the upper bridge in position against the inner surface of the tubular member.

2. A mouthpiece assembly, said assembly comprising only two main parts, one being a generally tubular mouthpiece so shaped as to include an integrally formed lower bridge, and a stop ledge marking the desired location of an upper bridge, the other part being made of thin sheet material, and comprising a reed and an upper bridge bent upwardly at the stationary end of the reed, the two main parts being assembled together with the movable end of the reed overlying the lower bridge, and with the upper bridge in position against the stop ledge.

3. A mouthpiece assembly, said assembly comprising only two main parts, one being a generally tubular mouthpiece so shaped as toinclude an integrally formed lower bridge, and contact ledges extending longitudinally of the mouthpiece, the other part being made of thin sheet metal, and comprising a reed and an approximately semi-circular upper bridge bent upwardly at the stationary end of the reed, the two main parts being assembled together with the reed overlying the contact ledges and the lower bridge, and with the upper bridge pressed tightly into position against the inner surface of the tubular member, the arrangement being such that the forcing of the upper bridge into position holds the reed in proper position within the mouthpiece without, however, interfering with the desired vibration of the reed.

4. A mouthpiece assembly for a toy horn, said assembly comprising only two main parts, one being a generally tubular mouthpiece so shaped as to include an integrally formed lower bridge, a stop ledge marking the desired location of an upper bridge, and contact ledges extending longitudinally of the mouthpiece in the region between said lower bridge and said stop ledge, the other part being made of thin sheet metal, and comprising a reed and an approximately semicircular upper bridge bent upwardly at the stationary end of the reed, the two main parts being assembled together with the reed overlying the Contact ledges and the lower bridge, and with the upper bridge pressed into position against the stop ledge.

5. A mouthpiece assembly, said assembly comprising only two main parts, one being a generally tubular mouthpiece cast out of a single piece of moldable material, and so shaped as to including an integrally cast lower bridge, the other part being made of thin sheet material, and comprising a reed and an upper bridge bent upwardly at the stationary end of the reed, the two main parts being assembled together with the movable end of the reed overlying the lower bridge, and with the upper bridge in position against the inner surface of the tubular member.

6. A mouthpiece assembly, said assembly comprising only two main parts, one being a generally tubular mouthpiece cast out of a single piece of moldable material, and so shaped as to include an integrally cast lower bridge, and a stop ledge marking the desired location of an upper bridge, the other part being made of thin sheet material, and comprising a reed and an upper bridge bent upwardly at the stationary end of the reed, the two main parts being assembled together with the movable end of the reed overlying the lower bridge, and with the upper bridge in position against the stop ledge.

7. A mouthpiece assembly, said assembly comprising only two main parts, one being a generally tubular mouthpiece cast out of a single piece of moldable material, and so shaped as to include an integrally cast lower bridge and contact ledges extending longitudinally of the mouthpiece, the other part being made of thin sheet metal, and comprising a reed and an approximately semi-circular upper bridge bent upwardly at the stationary end of the reed, the two main parts being assembled together with the reed overlying the contact ledges and the lower bridge, and with the upper bridge pressed tightly into position against the inner surface of the tubular member, with the edge of the sheet metal biting into the molded material, the arrangement being such that the upper bridge holds the reed in proper position within the mouthpiece Without, however, interfering with the desired vibration of the reed.

8. A mouthpiece assembly for a toy horn, said assembly comprising only two main parts, one being a generally tubular mouthpiece cast out of a single piece of plastic, and so shaped as to include an integrally cast lower bridge, a stop ledge marking the desired location of an upper bridge, and contact ledges extending longitudinally of the mouthpiece in the region between said lower bridge and said stop ledge, the other part being made of thin sheet metal, and comprising a reed and an approximately semi-circular upper bridge bent upwardly at the stationary end of the reed, the two main parts being assembled together with the reed overlying the ledges and the lower bridge, and with the upper bridge pressed tightly into position against the stop ledge, with the edge of the sheet metal biting into the plastic material.

9. A mouthpiece assembly, said assembly comprising only two main parts, one being a generally tubular mouthpiece formed out of sheet material appropriately shaped and indented to form a lower bridge, the other part being made of thin sheet material, and comprising a reed and an upper bridge bent upwardly at the stationary end of the reed, the two main parts being assembled together with the movable end of the reed overlying the lower bridge, and with the upper bridge in position against the inner surface of the tubular member.

l0. A mouthpiece assembly, said assembly comprising only two main parts, one beingfa generally tubular mouthpiece formed out oi' sheet material appropriately shaped and indented to form a lower bridge, and a stop ledge marking the desired location of an upper bridge, the other part being made of thin sheet material, and comprising a reed and an upper bridge bent upwardly at the stationary end of the reed, the two main parts being assembled together with the movable end of the reed overlying the lower bridge, and with the upper bridge in position against the stop ledge.

11. A mouthpiece assembly, said assembly comprising only two main parts, one being a generally tubular mouthpiece formed out of sheet metal appropriately shaped and indented to form a lower bridge, and contact ledges extending 1ongitudinally of the mouthpiece, the other part being made of thin sheet metal, and comprising a reed and an approximately semi-circular upper bridge bent upwardly at the stationary end of the reed, the two main parts being assembled together with the reed overlying the ledges and the lower bridge, and with the upper bridge pressed tightly into position against the inner surface of the tubular member, the arrangement being such that the forcing of the upper bridge into position holds the reed in proper position within the mouthpiece without, however, interfering with the desired vibration of the reed.

12. A mouthpiece assembly for a toy horn, said assembly comprising only two main parts, one being a generally tubular mouthpiece formed out of sheet metal appropriately shaped and indented to form a lower bridge, a stop ledge marking the desired location of an upper bridge, and contact ledges extending longitudinally of the mouthpiece in the region between said lower bridge and said stop ledge, the other part being made of thin sheet metal, and comprising a reed and an approximately semi-circular upper bridge bent upwardly at the stationary end of the reed, the two main parts being assembled together with the reed overlying the ledges and the lower bridge, and with the upper bridge pressed tightly into position against the stop ledge.

VICTOR T. I-IOEFLICH. 

